State of Science :: Pesticides
The Organic Center's "Dietary Risk Index" -- Tracking Relative Pesticide Risks in Foods and Beverages
September 2011
Author(s): Dr. Charles Benbrook Ph.D.
This report sets forth the methodology and data sources supporting the Center's "Dietary Risk Index," or DRI. This tool measures relative pesticide risks from residues in food.
The Center uses the DRI to track changes in pesticide risk levels in conventional foods, to compare risks in organic and conventional foods, to determine risk trends in food produced in the U.S. versus imports, and to quantify risks by type of food and pesticide.
The Center's list of relatively high-risk and typically low-risk foods is based on DRI values, taking into account differences in the residues present in domestically grown food versus imports.
See below for "Driving Down Pesticide Risks," our two-page summary of the DRI methodology report.
"Driving Down Pesticide Risks" (Two page summary)
